The Greatest Sin

Mikhail Alash stared at the piece of paper in his hands.

“Alash, excellent work on the planes. The success of Operation Misfortune rests as much on your shoulders as it does on Neneria’s. The next project will hopefully be more to your liking. Required will be:”

Mikhail stared at the list below the congratulations.

It was indeed more to his liking.

Kavaa ran out of her tent the moment she heard Helenna’s cry. Her blade appeared in her hand, armour sprouted her clothes. Trails of were severed and left on the ground as Kavaa rushed to sound, it was coming from the direction of the Jungle.

Kavaa set off immediately as Helenna kept crying, she crested the hill and saw Of Love running back across the red dead. “Kavaa! Kassandora! Kavaa! Kassandora!” Tears were streaming down Helenna’s face, her shirt and shorts were covered in red dust and she half-ran, half-stumbled forwards.

“I’m here Helenna!” Kavaa shouted and rushed down the hill. The Clerics were mobilizing behind her, grabbing armour and weapons. A band of Arikans was coming too from the other side too. “Helenna!” Kavaa raced down the hill as quickly as she could, a trail of red dust left in the air behind. She jumped towards Helenna and embraced her in a tight hug. “Helenna. Helenna! What happened?” Of Health’s magic surged, she inspected the woman, there was no damage on her apart from a scratch on her calves. That didn’t require healing.

“Kavaa!” Helenna collapsed onto Kavaa as she cried. Tears streamed down her face and her hair turned pure ivory-white. “Kavaa! I’m sorry. I’m sorry!”

“What happ-“ Kavaa’s voice was cut off by a blast of wind. The dirt burst exploded close to them into a cloud. Helenna ignored it entirely, simply continuing to cry and repeating how sorry she was. How she could not do anything. Kassandora walked out of that cloud of red dust, in her sleek black armour, with her greatsword ready.

“Where?” Kassandora said coldly. Kavaa felt her heart beat in fear. She had seen Allasaria grow angry, she had seen the arguments Maisara and Fortia held with them. She had seen Atis calmly hunt and Zerus grow into a roaring rage of cracking lightning. Never once did they carry expressions like that. Helenna pointed to the forest, to where something had clearly been dragged through the dirt and into the jungle.

Kavaa let go of Helenna and collapsed to her knees.

Impossible.

No.

Kassandora crouched, that helm of black plate appeared over her head until the only that was exposed was her red hair. She twisted, and then cracked the ground in an explosion of red dust. A tree fell in the forest as Of War dived into that green wall. “Helenna.” Kavaa said slowly. “Tell me it’s not so.”

“I’m sorry Kavaa!” Helenna fell down next to Kavaa. “I didn’t… I couldn’t do anything! She just pushed me away! I couldn’t…” She bawled as men came rushing down the hill. “She said save me Kavaa. She told me to save her!” The Clerics formed a phalanx around them, shields and weapons at the ready, and Kavaa saw another tree fall from within the forest.

Kassandora would save Iniri, right? She had to. She was the Goddess of War. She had never lost a battle in her entire lifetime. She held up Alkom’s Sun for Heaven’s sake! She had to! “Sleep Helenna.” Kavaa put her hand on the woman’s forehead and took her consciousness away. She stood up, Helenna in her arms, and turned to move back. “Take her to my tent, let her sleep.” Kavaa handed the Goddess to a grim-faced Cleric who strained as he readjusted the Goddess onto his back.

“At once.” He replied. Kavaa wasn’t looking at him though, she had already turned to the great Jungle. Trees collapsed in the distance. Sometimes a vine would be thrown into the sky, the Arikans would cheer every time that happened. Kavaa wished they shut up. There was no cheer in this situation. Fifteen minutes later, silence returned to the forest.

Impossible.

No.

Iniri was one thing, but Kassandora too? Kavaa would have collapsed if her legs had not frozen. Then a figure jumped out of the greenery in the distance. A figure in black armour. It moved in the air, Kavaa saw it clearly. Kassandora crouched, held her sword in the air, one hand on the hilt and the other on the blade’s tip. Her feet landed in the middle of the blade and she pushed off.

Her arms broke, a few fingers fell off the hilt, the hand holding the tip was sliced in half. Kassandora catapulted herself off the blade as it launched like an arrow and dematerialized. Of War flew like a rock launched by a trebuchet towards them. The Clerics managed to a take few steps as Kassandora landed in the ground, red dust was thrown up in the air and she slid to almost land at Kavaa’s feet. “Healing. Now.” Kassandora growled.

Kavaa was already on the case. Of War closed her eyes and smashed her fist into the ground as her fingers regrew. She took a simple deep breath, then stood up. The armour disappeared around her shirt. It had been white once, now it was red and torn where the metal had cut her. Where was Iniri? Kassandora put her arms on Kavaa’s shoulders and looked her straight in the face.

Kavaa was a doctor. She had seen dehydration and starvation, the worst diseases and the greatest losses. She had seen mothers cry for children lost and fathers bury sons. Cities razed in the Great War, villages burned to the ground, monsters and ghosts. She thought she had seen it all. And she looked into Kassandora’s eyes that burned with a fire more terrible than all of them. “Iniri, or the Pantheon?” Kassandora growled.

“W-What?”

“Iniri or the Pantheon!?” Kavaa did not even think about.

“I-Iniri.” Kassandora replied with a single nod. She jumped to the summit of the small hill behind her as Clerics ran out of her way. The greatsword reappeared in her hands. She stabbed it deep into the ground, then kicked off with sound of a cracking whip. The blade launched into the air and disappeared a few moments later.

Kavaa stood there, and Kavaa waited. Kassandora returned fifteen minutes later, with a woman crying in pain and an elf who fell to his needs and was sick. Kavaa moved to heal them. “DO NOT!” Kassandora shouted. “Save your energy, have a cleric do it. Bring all papers regarding the jungle here. However trite you think it is, I do not care. Bring it. NOW! IMMEDIATELY!” Kassandora shouted to the Clerics.

“FOLLOW HER ORDERS!” Kavaa backed her up. Kassandora did not even turn to acknowledge her, she jumped off the band of Arikans and made a similar demand. They ran off to their camp as Kassandora returned to Kavaa.

“What have you done?” Kavaa asked.

“I have called for reinforcements.” Kavaa blinked. Kassandora? Reinforcements? What reinforcements?

“What?”

“I cannot track her and the two of us are not enough to get through that jungle. I will slip up eventually, and then the jungle will get you.”

“Excuse me?” Kavaa blinked. “Get me?”

“You want to rescue Iniri? You’re a healer. For all we know, she may be limbless when we find her.” Kavaa felt blood drain from her face.

“How long?”

“Nine or ten hours.” Kassandora replied.

“WHAT? SHE’LL BE DEAD BY THEN!”

“The Jungle does rarely kills in the first five days. Arusei was taken when he was a child, he lasted two weeks in there.”

“How do you know that?”

“I do my investigations.” Kassandora said then turned to face the great wall of green.

“Then we should go in now!” Kavaa shouted back. “Every moment we waste here is another…” Kassandora did not reply, she faced Kavaa and merely extended her arm forward. Joyeuse appeared in her hand. She held the blade that was as long as she was tall without even a hint of exertion. Then she dropped it, it landed like an anvil and threw red dust into the air.

“Lift that.” She said coldly.

“W-what?”

“Lift that and I will go in with just you and me.” Kassandora said. “LIFT IT!” She shouted. Kavaa slowly bent down, this was an entirely different Kassandora than the one she had talked to before. This was the one that they had fought against in the Great War. Kavaa’s fingers wrapped around the handle of Joyeuse and she straightened her back.

And she stopped straightening her back.

Kavaa gritted her teeth, the handle of the sword moved maybe an inch off the ground. Then her fingers gave out and it fell back down. Kassandora took a step forwards, put her foot under the handle and kicked it up easily. She made the sword pirouette around her fingers, those burning crimson eyes always focused on Kavaa. “That is the difference between us Kavaa.” Kassandora said. “I know you don’t like it, but that is the way we have been made.” The sword disappeared as Kavaa took a step back. Kassandora continued her assault. “The greatest Divine gift I have received is the ability to think. I know if I enter with you, I will not be able to hold against that unending madness. An hour, we would both enter, but if I have to protect you for a day, a week, then I will lose you too.” Kavaa felt her eyes start to water.

“But Iniri…”

“Iniri will have to hold!” Kassandora roared. “She’s been around for longer than both of us! She WILL be around for longer than both of us!” She turned to the forest and shouted. “DO YOU HEAR THAT INIRI! STAY ALIVE! WE ARE COMING!”

There was no reply. Kavaa felt a tear go down her cheek as Kassandora crossed her arms. “Do you know of Iliyal Tremali?” Of War asked.

“He was one of your generals… back then…” Kavaa sniffled and wiped the single tear off her cheek.

“He’s still alive.” Kassandora turned and pointed to the elf still on the ground. “That’s his grandson. Iliyal is up on that hill.” She pointed to a mountain in the far distance. Kavaa would need an hour to clear that distance.

“I see.” Kavaa said. She was already with Kassandora, what was working with men she had fought against a thousand years past? Did grievances like that even matter after such a point?

“Don’t kill him.”

“I won’t.” Kavaa said and Kassandora nodded.

“He’s calling the best hunter I know.”

“Who?” A light suddenly shone from that hill. A green flare that was shot high into the darkening sky. Kassandora turned, all the ruthlessness from before had left her face. Those red eyes had lost their burning infernos within them and returned to the lovely rubies they were before. She even smiled a lovely smile.

“That’s the signal we have permission!” Kassandora shouted excitedly. Joyeuse appeared in her hand again and she stabbed it into the ground as she had done before. “Don’t worry, you’ve met her before!” She jumped and launched herself off that sword as Kavaa was left standing on that hill.

A hunter? Kavaa was left there standing in confusion. A huntress? Who? The best huntress Kassandora knew? And Kavaa had met her before? Who called themselves a hunt…

Oh no.

Kavaa knew exactly who she meant.